The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1887-03-18
OLD UNCLE cY.
PEN PICTURE OF THE OLD TIME
PLANTATION SLAVE.


gro seryant-"Aunt Bess-"
Uncle Remus, /" so charmtngly sketchec
by Chandler Harris, OF Georgia, had his
counterpart in many a southern house
hold. My Uncle Remus Is dead. He was
the home born slave OF my grandfather,
In Barnweil, and in his early manhood
RATED lumber down Edisto river to
Charleston A pure African by blood, he
had the strongly marked prognathous
features Of his race; was six feet high,
with fesh and muscle in proportion. On
the marriage Of my father, in 1920, Cy
was given to him, and helped him TO build
the log house to which he took his bride,
and to clear his first field. Uncle Cy, as
the children always called him, taught me
to ride n horse, and later on TO shoot a
gun. He shook hickory nuts out of the
tall trees, and rived trap sticks for me to
catch birds, made cute bows and arrows,
and in the spring time could peel of bark
from saplings and plat me the most glori-
Gus popping whips in the world He was
tie best wagner of his time; could get
more out of u team with less worry, and
take heavy load over the worst roads
with less accident than anybody else. AT
log roilings and house raisings he was
head man, and likewise at grading oats
and wheat. He was fabulous, in my eyes,
for strength and skill For blowing, hoe
ing and cotton picking he was no great
things-rather disdained them as fit only
for women and common niggers- He was
a great GxIaan, and could hew to the line.
He cEewed tobacco; and many of my
choicest favors and propitiaticns were pro-
cured by quid literally quid pro quo.
l suppose he was the father Of thirty or
forty children, begotten in his own image,
and that all his neutrality-suspicious.
grandchildren and greatgrandchildren-
lxfea to-
dred.
Uncle Cy became n fair plantation car
penter and blacksmith; could make a pillow
and stock it, hang doors and gates and
make a wagon that would rum On my
fathers death Cy became the property Of
my mother by his will, for he thought
fully said she could not Keep up the plan
tation without him. At the division Of
her estate he and his wife fen TO me. By
degrees he graded me up as years went on
1t was first Holland, then Mas Holland,
| then Master which title he used to the
last, as though he liked il. Here / may
record u criticism on that romance of
marvellous genius, Uncle Toms Cabin. ="
| Such a negro es Uncle Tom was never
sold out of any family Money could not
buy that sort
1t was a great treat to be permitted to
''go to town. with Uncle Cy on the cot
! ton wagon. There was one to whom he
| bore tender loyalty, and for whom he
had three names-Missus, Your Mudder,
| and Miss Betsy. To her he felt amenable
| for the lads safety, and he well knew how
I TO afford him the utmost fun within safe
| ty limits. When the bright camp fire was
| kindlesl and the team battered and fed for
| the night, Uncle Cy would bring out that
| frying pan-his only culinary apparatus
| and work up savory meal For butch
/ ering a beef or mutton there was none
| like him, and at hog killing time he en-
riched me with pigtails and bladders- In
/ ghosts and witches he was a firm believer,
and could beat Vennor prognosticating the
weather. l would put him against Car
isle or Barnard for telling the hour of the
night IL the Seven Stars, Jobs Coffin, the
Three Runners, and other heavenly bodies
were shining.
| For overseers he had a deep dislike.
| While obeying his own master in the
| letter and spirit of the Epistle to the
| Ephesians, he was insuborGinate to dele
| gated authority, and here came in his
most serious troubles sad case 1 re-
member to have occurred in Alabama
about 1910 In difficulty with the
overseer Uncle Cy rebelled and ran away,
taking with him two other negro men,
| They were gone over a year, and NO
| tidings of them could be got At last
they turned up in South Carolina II
seems they had made their way back to
the old Barnweu neighborhood, a distance
of over 300 miles, crossing the Chatta-
hoochee, Flint, Oconee, Ocmulgee and
Savannah rivers, and becoming weary OF
hiding out they voluntarily surrendered
themselves. / was a schoolboy at Collins
worth, Ga, when they passed along the
road in the ragged and chapfallen plight OF
runaways being returned home.
Thirty years later Uncle Cy met me at
the station to take me out to my farm,
Butler Lodge. OF that runaway
episode in his life he had ever been reti-
cent, but we rode along through the
lonely forest / drew him ont on it, Now
tell me; no danger; freedoms come; tell
me all about it-how you lodged the
patrols and crossed those rivers and made
the trip" And j slipped a plug of to-
bacco into his hand. Never was a twenty
mile journey better beguiled- He told
me au-how they got up a stock Of pro-
! visions to start ON and how they replen-
ished it by the way, the narrow escapes,
the shrewd DISCUSSES for passing through
| or around the towns and villages; lying
low 10y day and travelling by night Dick
ems never contrived a story with richer or
more various incident. Much comedy,
but ever and anon touching on tragedy.
Xenophon's famous retreat with the
I 10000 Grecks did not excel this in strategy.
patton came / gave him forty acres Of
land and mot a mule, butt a yoke OF
steers, a COW and calf, some provisions
and his tools. He soon fixed mp q snug
| home and n shop; and what with work
| ing at his craft ard q little farming, and
such annual stipend a. could send him
| in money. he made out to finish his pill
| griniage tolerably we'll His connubial
morals improved, and 1 believe in his sal
walton. His last letters to me dictatedD
were full of gratitude and hope.
! Uncle Cy owed much to his wife-an
honest, truthful and virtuous woman.
| She was the best nurse / ever saw, and
Ininistercd with unspe3kable fidelity and
tenderness TO my parents and brothers
| and sisters on their deathbeds- Aunt
| Bess'' was tie first woman 1 ever heard
| pray in public. She was a heaven and q
| light Some influence and honest pennies
! she gained by prao ticinS that delicate pro-
| fession which TIE Egyptians, in Moses
| time, turned over to their women Only
| once did she fell me- When the Federal
armies were getting into Alabama we
proposed to put our silver spoons and
such things in her keeping. well, mas
ter, in course IN do IL II you say so, but
| can't be 'sponsible. Dem Yankees is q
coming, and hearn tell how dey carries
wild 'eIn somethin' like pinter worm,
ard when it's sot down dey tells il to pint
| wl.l any money or silver things is hid,
and It pints jest ~ straight rs n gum
| VI. y. McTyeire in Charleston Christian